


Fight For You

by gayycryptid



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: College!AU, Fight Club!AU, It's both fight me, LOTS of violence, M/M, No relation to actual Fight Club, Pining, Slow Burn, Warnings for Neil and Andrew's pasts, high school!au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-02
Updated: 2017-10-09
Packaged: 2018-12-10 04:20:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11683926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gayycryptid/pseuds/gayycryptid
Summary: Seventeen-year old Neil Josten is living in a warehouse. Again. Hiding from his father, Neil makes his sole mission survival. But sometimes survival isn't enough. Fortunately, some strangers give Neil another chance to do the one thing that makes him feel alive. Fighting.ORAn AU where Neil can both start a fight and finish one.





	1. Chapter 1

Neil Josten wasn’t real. The name, and the face, was a mask donned only for survival, a tool for escape. Neil Josten was a shadow of a boy, a ghost who existed only on the rare occasions he conversed with another person. And even then, only barely.

If Neil was being honest, he didn’t have much experience being real, or alive, even. Even before running, even when he was Nathaniel, feelings other than fear and pain were experienced only fleetingly: nights spent wandering the streets with his mother, or in the basement of their shoddy little house, watching old movies while Nathan was out getting drunk, or doing whatever else he did when he wasn’t tormenting the two of them. 

Those peaceful moments were rare. And when they ended, Nathaniel had been forced to return to his own skewed reality, his own nightmare of a life. And the only thing that changed after running is that maybe the nightmare was slightly less dramatic. 

A cold drop of water splashed onto Neil’s face, startling him from his dismal thoughts. Sighing deeply, Neil looked to the ceiling, which was already dotted with dozens of holes, and prayed that no droplets would aim for his eye. The large, littered building which had acted as his home for the past couple months was made up of one vast, gaping room with three smaller, adjoining rooms which Neil guessed were former offices and chose to take shelter in. The floors of the warehouse were scattered with a variety of garbage, ranging from candy bar wrappers to steel rods to pieces of wood with protruding nails. Despite the risk of tetanus, it was probably the safest place he’d ever lived, ironically.

He refrained from calling it _his_ warehouse, though. That was just depressing.

Deciding that his daily quota for self-pity had been exceeded too early in the day, Neil dragged his sleeping bag, duffel bag and his other belongings into a dryer spot. He quickly pulled on some shorts and a t-shirt for his daily run, shivering as the chilly morning air touched his bare skin. After a quick warm-up, he jogged out onto the streets, feeling the burn building in his legs as he pushed himself faster and faster, as his breath got shorter and shorter.

After running for what seemed like only minutes, but was probably a lot longer, Neil took a break. The pressing anxiety that he had awoken with had finally slowed to a soft buzzing at the back of his head and a pleasant numbness spreading down his legs. Neil turned and began to slowly make his way back to the warehouse through the humid South Carolina air. The sun was near its zenith in the sky, casting a shimmery heat over the streets of Columbia. 

By the time Neil returned to the warehouse, sweat was dripping unpleasantly down his face. Knowing he was only going to get dirty again after his workout, Neil didn’t bother to clean up via the tap out back of the warehouse. Instead, he grabbed his pack of cigarettes from his duffel bag and opened the nearest window. Neil pulled himself onto the windowsill and lit up, silently offering it up to the memory his mother, as he always did.

_This is for you, Mom._

After the first drag, Neil neglected to put the cigarette to his lips, holding it under his nose instead, battling the raging war of his thoughts. A swirl of grief and nostalgia and anger battered the inside of his chest violently. Memories of the old smoke-soaked couch in his mother’s basement and stern grey eyes crashed into those of his father pressing fiery cigarettes against his skin. Nausea rose in Neil’s dry throat as he recalled the scents of burning skin and his mother’s shampoo mingled with smoke.

Neil took a shuddering breath in a semi-successful attempt at composing himself. Pressing the half-burned cigarette to the windowsill beside him, Neil looked around and sighed. 

He was tired of the warehouse. He was tired of fearing his father. He was tired of having nothing to do, except run and hide and _survive._

Terror ruled Neil’s every action and his restless soul was growing tired of it. 

Huffing, Neil jumped from the windowsill and began pacing the cement floor. Sooner or later, something had to give.

 

*

 

As it turned out, change came only a couple days later.

It was a hot (as usual) Sunday in July. The day started as it usually did, with Neil going for his morning run, having a cigarette, staring at the walls, finishing his daily workout, complete with pull-ups from the somewhat unsteady steel bars that crisscrossed the warehouse, staring at the ceiling, studying some German with the borrowed books from the library, having another cigarette and ‘bathing’ with the rusty water that flowed out of the tap outside the warehouse. If he had spare time, he stared at the floor instead.

However, it was Sunday, which, in Neil’s new life, meant it was the day to go grocery shopping. Neil usually frequented a small grocery store only a couple streets away from the warehouse. He preferred to go at night to avoid anyone who could report his location to his father and his…’associates.’

On this particular night, Neil decided to make the walk into downtown Columbia instead. He didn’t often venture into the crowded area, terrified of the masses of people, any of whom could be linked to his father. But Neil was growing tired of his self-imposed isolation, of his unfulfilling routine that did nothing more than keep him alive. So just this once, he broke routine.

The cool night breeze gently wafted against his face as he wandered through the dimly lit streets. He slowly allowed some of the tension to leak from his body. Neil didn’t exactly live in a great neighborhood but not many people lived in the area, seeing as The Warehouse was only one in a sea of them. As long as he stuck to the main streets and kept his knife tucked in the waistband of his pants, he should be fine. For the moment, Neil just took the time to appreciate the quiet night and the lights of the city illuminating the dark sky.

Within fifteen minutes, Neil arrived at a large, but thankfully empty grocery. He grabbed a basket and set to work filling it with the ‘essentials.’ Which were basically a bunch of fruits, granola bars, hair dye, wet wipes for when he got tired of the rusty water, cigarettes and a couple bottles of water, for when he got tired of the rusty water. Exchanging a quick word with the cashier and noting the rasp of his voice from lack of use, Neil left the store.

As he began retracing his steps back to the warehouse, he suddenly became aware of the vibrating pavement beneath his feet. Listening closely, he realized that the ground was pulsing to the beat of some far-away music, likely from a club or bar.

Not quite ready to return to the empty, drab warehouse, Neil decided to follow the sound to its source. It wasn’t as though Neil particularly liked clubs, or even that he was old enough to enter it in the first place. Still. He hasn’t heard music in a while and the need for a break in the monotony urged his feet towards the sound. Plus he barely spent any time in the heart of the city. He should learn the lay of the land, just in case.

Pushing down the fear of being this exposed for an extended period of time, Neil moved towards the music. He knew his fear was illogical. His father was in Baltimore and it was hardly likely he would send people after his useless runaway son. Nathan had always made it clear exactly what he thought of his son.

And yet, Neil’s hands pounded as he snaked his way through the streets, eyes flitting frantically from side to side, searching for the familiar features of his loathed father’s face. Perhaps unwisely, he chose to stick to alleyways rather than remain in full view of the streets.

Soon enough, it seemed as though Neil had arrived at the source of the music. He walked down a final alley towards the street, contemplating what he should do now that he had arrived at his destination. Lost in thoughts, Neil missed the tall shadow stepping out from behind a dumpster and walked directly into it.

The touch of an unknown, possibly dangerous, man on Neil’s body set him instantly on edge. Already coiled from the fear and anticipation of his father, Neil reacted. 

Dropping his bags, Neil instantly shoved at the figure in front of him, giving himself space to swing his arms. Adrenalin flooded his veins. Instincts snapped into place and Neil stopped thinking. Quickly he threw a right-hook into the man’s abdomen, right where his liver would be. 

A grunt erupted from the stranger, but unfortunately he only took half a moment to recover. When Neil attempted to follow up his punch with an uppercut to the chin, a hand shot out and grabbed Neil’s wrist. Then, pain exploded from his stomach, where the man had kneed his with tremendous power. 

Staggering a little, Neil twisted his wrist from the stranger’s strong grip. As he took a breath, Neil noticed that the man favored his left hand, huddling it against his chest while his right came hurtling toward Neil’s face. Which meant-

Neil smirked a little. Ducking at the last moment, he feinted right, then kicked out at the man’s left knee. As expected, the protected left hand did nothing to stop Neil from hooking his leg and _pulling._

The man stumbled against the dumpster next to them. Neil used the moment to get behind him, twist his arms into a strong hold and force him against the wall of the alley. He yanked his forgotten knife from his waistband, holding it at the nape of the man’s neck, even as his insides squirmed uneasily.

Only then, did Neil’s brain switch back on, realizing that the man hadn’t _actually_ tried to hurt him.

And only then did Neil notice that the man wasn’t defending himself.

‘Hey I-‘Neil began to apologize when he was interrupted by a foot coming up and kicking at his groin. Simultaneously, he felt a couple rabbit-quick punches at his back. The combined pain had him on his knees, groaning and clutching at his groin in a vaguely embarrassing manner. He wasn’t allowed to recover in peace, however, as new hands clutched at his upper arms and pinned him into the wall, hard enough to bruise. Then as if that wasn’t enough, Neil felt a knife press into the small of his back. 

Neil inhaled sharply at that. The feeling of a knife against his body almost made him spiral immediately. Fighting it, Neil tuned back into his surroundings, noticing that the two men were having a conversation behind him.

‘–recognize him from the Nest, Kevin?’ the man directly behind Neil asked.

‘No. I’ve never seen him before. I don’t think he’s one of them,’ the other, Kevin replied. ‘Them’ was said in a mix of scorn and fear.

‘Well? Did Riko send you, raven?’ Neil didn’t realize that the question was directed at him until extra weight was placed on his body, pressing his face harder in the rough brick wall, the knife digging harder still. A spike of irritation ran through him, even in the face of his fear.

‘Seeing as I don’t know who that is, I doubt it.’ And yeah, maybe wise-cracking wasn’t the best idea in this particular situation, but when has that stopped Neil before.

‘Hmm. I’m not sure I believe you. Maybe we should have a chat.’ A threat laced through the man’s voice. A sharp thrill of fear went through Neil at the words. Bad memories pressed against his eyelids as he remained silent. 

‘Let him go, Andrew. He wasn’t there. And his fighting style was completely different,’ Kevin said.

A pause. Then the weight moved, allowing Neil to pry himself off the wall. Neil took a second to school his face into a non-expression and then turned to examine the two men.

Upon closer inspection, Neil realized that they were hardly men at all, only a year or two older than him, if so much. The shorter of the two, Andrew, was blonde and muscular, blank, hazel eyes tracking Neil’s every movement, right hand still gripping a small but dangerous-looking knife. Kevin stood a little behind Andrew, an inked number 2 on his left cheekbone and still clutching his hand close to him, as if worried that Neil would somehow steal it. He didn’t look angry at all…maybe contemplative.

Neil had barely glanced at the two when he found himself shoved back into the grimy wall, knife pressed against his jugular. Neil struggled to keep his reflexive fear from showing as he turned his focus to the immediate threat.

‘If not ravens, then who?’ Andrew’s words held no emotion, but his eyes held a glint of anger as he pressed against Neil.

Neil loathed to tell these strangers anything about himself, but he suspected he had no choice.

Steeling himself and hoping that this wasn’t an elaborate trick designed by his father, Neil told the closest thing to the truth that he could muster.

‘Neil. Josten. And I’m nobody, I swear.’

Something flashed across Andrew’s face briefly when Neil said that. Perhaps he had hesitated too long to say his assumed name. Slowly, the knife dropped from his throat and a lone drop of blood trailed down his skin. He hadn’t noticed that Andrew had broken skin.

Andrew shifted to take a protective stance in front of Kevin, Neil tracking his every movement. Every one of the man’s –boy’s, whatever- muscles were coiled in preparation. Knife still gripped tightly, Andrew looked at him expectantly, as if searching for an explanation.

Deciding to just give the man what he was looking for, Neil said, ‘I was walking. He startled me. I reacted.’ He glanced at Kevin, though reluctant to take his eyes from the danger in front of him. ‘Sorry,’ he added, unused to apologizing.

Kevin, for his part, didn’t look like he’d even heard him.

‘Those were boxing moves, weren’t they?’ he blurted. He still appeared deep in thought and Neil couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking about so hard directly after being attacked by a random stranger in an alley.

‘Um, yeah, mostly. Why?’ Neil raised a brow in question while attempting to split focus between the both of them. 

Fortunately, Andrew took that moment to put his knife away after appraising Neil thoroughly. Apparently bored of the interaction, he leaned against the wall, paying no further attention to Kevin.

‘Is that the only fighting style you know?’ Kevin pressed. Neil frowned a little, annoyance replacing panic as Andrew was no longer a threat.

‘No. If you’re done, I’m expected at home.’ Shouldering past Kevin, he picked up his bags of probably bruised fruit and began to walk away.

‘Actually, I-‘ Whatever Kevin was about to say was interrupted by Andrew muttering something about addicts. As a door slammed closed behind Andrew, Kevin called out something about a rematch. Neil ignored him, fleeing instead to the relative safety of his warehouse.

By the time Neil returned to hi- to the warehouse, limping painfully, he’d realized something. 

That brief fistfight –barely two minutes long- had momentarily made him feel more alive than he had in years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you guys enjoyed this. I've had this idea for a while now and I can't wait to share it with you. Chapters will be longer and hopefully will get better as I improve.  
> Also I've never watched Fight Club. So don't expect too much from me.  
> Feedback is appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

Neil groaned as he peeled his eyes open the next morning, pain radiating throughout his body. The sleeping bag placed on the freezing warehouse floor had not helped his aches and bruises and he was feeling the effects now. Grimacing, he attempted to account for all the injuries he had sustained in the fight.

His face was bruised and grazed from being pressed into the rough, jagged wall. When he lifted his shirt, his torso was littered with multiple, bluish-black bruise and he had a feeling his back was the same way. The knuckles of his right hand were split open and he could feel the shallow cut on his neck caused by Andrew’s knife. His entire body ached from the physical exertion from the short but intense fight.

It had been years since Neil’s last sparring match with anyone and he was horribly out of practice. Still, Neil’s heart pounded with excitement when he recalled the swift, dancing movements of the night before. The adrenaline, the way his mind and body had become more in sync, more alert, ready for anything; he’d missed it, even though he’d gotten his ass kicked.

It couldn’t happen again, though. Getting into fight was beyond dangerous. He was lucky it hadn’t been anyone else in that alley. Fights lead to the police, which, as a minor, would inevitably lead to his father. But god.

His mother had taught him how to fight. He could remember nights in the basement, nails dug into bare skin, being slammed to the ground over and over as his mother taught him everything she knew. Repeating the same moves over and over, mastering it before moving onto the next. She never went easy on him, and she never stopped teaching him. Even now, her voice echoed in his head, lending advice and comfort.

Mary hadn’t meant it as a form of self-defense, Neil knew. Not once had she ever fought back against Nathan’s abuse. And not once had did she try to persuade Neil to defend himself. 

No, it was an escape, a distraction. Maybe an illusion, a way for them to taste the power and freedom that they weren’t allowed to keep. Either way, it hadn’t helped Mary in the end. 

Allowing himself only one more moment of remembering his mother, Neil pushed himself from his sleeping bag. Doing his best to ignore his achy body, he rummaged through his duffel bag for a granola bar, noting worriedly that he was running low on cash. He’d have to pawn some of his mother’s stuff soon. Or maybe dabble in some pick-pocketing.

Pushing down the sudden anxiety, Neil decided to deal with that when it became a problem. Instead, he opted to go for his daily run, despite his injuries. He’d been through far worse, after all.

As Neil jogged down the street, he suddenly got the feeling that he was being…watched. Observed. He immediately stopped in his tracks and turned in a full circle, scanning the street for anything –or anybody- unusual. He saw nothing, but still the prickly feeling on the back of his neck remained.

He continued to run, remaining vigilant and keeping an eye on his surroundings. The next hour went without incident, but Neil didn’t relax into his run, too consumed with what-ifs.

What if Nathan had found him? Was he going to be dragged back to Baltimore? Was his time finally up? He would rather die than go back to that place, that house filled only with pain and riddles and fear. 

His mind was still stuck in a panic when he returned to the warehouse. He walked into the large building carefully, keeping his footsteps quiet. Silence echoed through the shaky building, setting Neil on edge. But, everything was exactly the way he left it.

Strange. His father wasn’t exactly known for subtlety.

Maybe he was being paranoid. Maybe the encounter with the two teenagers in the alley last night had shaken him more than he thought. 

Breathing out shakily, Neil decided not to make any rash decisions just yet. Other than the mind-numbing boredom, Columbia had been good to him. He didn’t want to leave, not without good reason. Not yet.

 

*

 

The same thing happened every day for the rest of the week. 

Anytime Neil left the building, the hair on the nape of his neck stood on end and goose bumps prickled his skin. Sometimes he woke in the middle of the night, swearing that he’d heard a car engine outside, but when he checked, there was nothing there. The only sign of trouble was the uneasiness that had needled its way under his skin.

By Thursday morning, Neil had to practically force himself to go for his run, unwilling to leave the warehouse for the vulnerability of the streets. But he had to keep watch over the ‘neighborhood’, check the perimeter, so to speak.

So he went. By the time he returned, his neck was sore from how often he had craned it, checking for someone following him or observing him. Neil’s nerves were shot to hell by all this.

And, as it turned out, for good reason.

The first thing he noticed was the footprints. The main room floor was coated with a thick layer of dust and while Neil had walked through umpteen times himself, it wasn’t difficult to notice the new, larger ones tracking round the edges of the room. 

Neil was immediately on alert. Pulling the hated knife from his waistband, he crept slowly toward the back room where he slept, ears and eyes opened. Standing in the doorway, he instantly noticed the glaring absence of his duffel bag. 

‘Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck,’ Neil muttered to himself, instantly panicking as he entered the room, checking behind stacks of wood and steel for the bag. He knew where he had left it though and he knew he was screwed.

That bag had everything. All his cash, all his clothes, all the jewelry and watches and valuables he’d taken when he left, thing that he sold, that he lived on. 

He was fucked.

Had his father taken it? Was he here? God, he knew he should have left earlier, should’ve trusted his instincts.

He was spiraling so completely that he nearly didn’t notice the voice saying, ‘Looking for something?’

Neil whirled around, raising the knife in defense and saw- ‘You.’

Perched on some scaffolding in the corner of the room was Andrew, the short blonde knife-bearer from Sunday night. And naturally, he was playing with his knife, twirling it through his fingers, over and over, making the metal glimmer dangerously. Next to him sat Neil’s duffel bag. Caught between the relief of not seeing his father and the fear of the unknown quantity that was Andrew, Neil’s eyebrows furrowed confusedly. 

‘What- What are you doing here?’ Neil demanded, knife still held in his slightly trembling hands.

‘I think your answer to that question would be more interesting, hmm?’ Andrew replied, piercing hazel eyes pinning Neil in place.

Neil frowned as a couple pieces from the last couple days fell into place. ‘Have you been following me? And- did you go through my bag?’ Anger was beginning to replace his confusion. Privacy obviously wasn’t a concern of Andrew’s. Not that anything seemed a concern of his, judging by the bored expression that Neil guessed was characteristic for him.

The man shrugged. ‘It was a precaution. I had to make sure you weren’t a threat.’

‘To who?’

Andrew didn’t answer at first, jumping from the scaffolding and prompting Neil to take a cautious step backward, cursing himself for showing his trepidation. ‘At first I thought you were just a typical homeless kid. Upon further inspection-‘ he glanced toward the duffel bag, ‘-I had to revise my answer.’

‘You had no right to go through my shit,’ Neil replied, shoving down the cold dread that emerged at the thought of anyone finding out anything about him.

‘You had no right to touch someone who belongs to me,’ Andrew retorted. Neil raised an eyebrow at that. He presumed Andrew meant Kevin but that sort of protective spirit wasn’t common.

‘Well I have no plans on hurting anyone again, including your friend. So you can leave now.’

Andrew tilted his head. ‘He’s not my friend. And are you sure? You seemed to like it on Sunday.’

Stiffening, Neil glanced to the floor. He’d never been read quite so easily. Taking a risk, he lowered his knife, resting his tiring arm. ‘I don’t enjoy hurting people,’ he replied honestly looking up again, fists clenched tightly.

Andrew’s face remained impassive but he put away his knife after a moment. ‘Hm. So, what’s your story then?’

Neil glared in response. ‘I don’t have a story.’ Now that was a lie.

‘Right.’ Andrew looked unconvinced. ‘I’ll figure it out.’ Before Neil could protest being treated like a particularly difficult puzzle, Andrew called out, ‘Kevin.’

‘You’ve got to be kidding me,’ Neil muttered, not putting his knife away just yet. Andrew may not be an immediate threat but he was definitely dangerous.

Kevin entered through the door that connected this office to the adjoining one, a glare on his face and an arrogant tilt to his posture. His left hand was lowered to his side for the first time since Neil met him. Standing in front of him, he said, ‘Kevin Day,’ and then seemed to wait for something.

‘…ok?’ Neil replied. He didn’t know what Kevin expected from him.

‘He’s not in the community, Kevin. He doesn’t know who you are.’ Andrew seemed slightly pleased as Kevin shot him a glare, even though his face didn’t betray anything.

‘Look I have no idea what you two are talking about. So if you’ll excuse me-‘ Neil said trying to get them to leave. It didn’t work.

‘You’re a fighter, right,’ Kevin pushed. It didn’t sound like a question.

Neil sighed. The sooner he answered these assholes’ questions, the sooner they would leave. Hopefully. ‘Sort of. I know some stuff, I guess,’ he admitted. It was a bit of an understatement, but they didn’t have to know that.

‘An amateur, then. No wonder, your footwork was beyond sloppy and your hooks couldn’t hurt a fly.’ Kevin said this mostly to himself. Anger flared through Neil.

Neil scoffed, ‘You’re one to talk.’ He punctuated this with a pointed look towards Kevin’s left hand. A snort sounded from Andrew’s direction. A shadow passed over Kevin’s face and Neil got the distinct feeling that there was an interesting story behind the injury. Regardless- ‘I don’t know who you guys are to come into my…place of residence and insult my fighting ability but I’m tired. Either get to the point or get out.’

‘I want to train you.’ 

That shut Neil up.

‘We’re part of a –fighting club, so to speak. We train with a coach and then we have a match, every Friday. And though you have a lot of work to do, you have potential.’

‘What makes you think you think I’d want to be a part of your illegal fight club?’ Neil asked, narrowing his eyes, ignoring his suddenly racing heartbeat.

Kevin scoffed. ‘Sunday. You fought like you had nothing to lose. Like you loved it, like you couldn’t wait to win. Fighters with passion go further.’ Curiously, he looked to Andrew as he said the last bit.

‘Plus you looked fucking thrilled to lose a fight,’ Andrew commented, a hint of disgust in his voice. Yeah, Neil could believe that.

Neil shut his eyes, breathing carefully. He knew what the logical thing to do was. A fight club? The risk was too high. Purposefully doing something so illegal when he knew what would happen if he was caught was stupid. His mother’s last words echoed in his mind. Keep your head down, Abram. Don’t be an idiot.

But god, was the offer tempting. The chance to do what he loved, maybe for some kind of money. Maybe a way to get out of this goddamn warehouse, even. 

No. 

‘I can’t,’ he said, opening his eyes. ‘Thanks but the offer but no.’

‘Why?’ Kevin demanded, frowning deeply. ‘We can offer you something, maybe a place to stay.’ He glanced around at the warehouse with a little bit of disdain.

‘I have other things to worry about than being caught beating someone up in a basement somewhere. So you can go now.’ The words were difficult to muster, seemingly clinging to his throat as Neil tried to speak.

‘Bu-‘ Kevin began to protest but Andrew interrupted him.

‘Josten doesn’t want to be your pet, Kevin. Get over it. Let’s go.’ He began to leave the room with hardly a glance toward Neil. Neil tried to not be too disappointed that they were giving up that easily.

Kevin looked aggrieved, turning to follow. Neil was beginning to notice the way Kevin followed Andrew around, a little like a puppy. Keeping his thoughts to himself, Neil went to retrieve his duffel bag from the scaffolding.

‘You’ll change your mind,’ Kevin said as he left the room.

‘I won’t.’ Neil wasn’t even sure if that was a lie or not.

 

*

 

Weeks went by. Neil tried his best to forget the encounter, Kevin, Andrew, the fight, all of it. It wouldn’t do him any good.

He was still trying to convince himself of this two and a half weeks after Andrew and Kevin had ‘visited’ the warehouse. Neil was sitting on the windowsill, ‘smoking’ a cigarette, allowing the strong smoke to wipe his mind clean, when his phone rang, jarring him unpleasantly.

Neil didn’t like his phone. He doubted his father had the capability to trace it, but he worried anyway. He tried not to take any risks when it came to his demon of a father, to follow his mother’s instructions. He only turned the phone on once every couple of weeks, in case the one person who knew the number had any information for him.

‘Uncle Stuart?’ Neil answered.

‘Nathaniel.’ Neil tried his best not to flinch at his birth name. His uncle didn’t mean anything by it, he knew.

‘Are you ok? Is something wrong?’ His uncle had promised to only call if there was an emergency. It wasn’t a surprise that his call concerned Neil.

‘I’m fine. Your father has been arrested.’ Neil’s uncle said this as though he were commenting on the weather, not delivering potentially life-changing news.

Neil’s mouth gaped open in shock. ‘W-what?’ he stuttered out.

‘Not for anything too big, unfortunately. Officially, six months for drug possession, but expect him out in three or four. They might pay or his release’ Neil remained silent, struggling to process the information. His father was…in jail?

‘Nathaniel? Are you there?’ 

‘Uh yeah, Uncle Stuart. I’m here.’ Stuart sighed on the end of the line. The faint sound of a cigarette lighter echoed in Neil’s ear. The sound mixed with the British accent reminded Neil painfully of his mom, adding grief to the maelstrom of emotions running through him.

‘This isn’t an excuse to let your guard down, Nathaniel. Enjoy the next couple months, but remember that he’s still out there, and his people definitely are. The bastard may not be actively looking for you but if you end up in his lap again, well.’

Nell knew what that meant. There wasn’t much Stuart could do if Neil ended up with his father again. Nathan worked for a gang that was allied with Stuart’s. He couldn’t risk making enemies just to protect his nephew.

‘Understood, uncle. Thanks for letting me know,’ Neil mumbled. 

‘Of course. Be careful. I’ll call if Nathan gets out earlier than expected.’ The name ‘Nathan’ was said with potent anger and disgust, a change from Stuart’s usual calm voice. It wasn’t a surprise, after what Neil’s father did to his sister.

‘Alright. Thanks.’ Neil hung up and leaned against the wall behind him, used to his uncle’s curtness.

His father was in jail. For at least a little while, Nathan couldn’t get to Neil. What did that mean for Neil? Should he stay in Columbia or leave? 

The others were still around. All of his father’s friends. And Neil knew his father had contacts, had ways of getting things done. He wasn’t even sure this changed anything but-

His mind automatically jumped to Kevin’s weeks-old offer. He had turned it down because it could draw attention to himself, potentially his father’s attention. But his father couldn’t get to him, at least not right now. He was tired of letting his father dictate his life. He was tired of living out of warehouses and abandoned homes. And more than anything, he was tired of not having anything to live for, not really.

If he was careful about it, if he laid low why couldn’t he have a taste of a life worth living, even if it wouldn’t last long?

Neil knew it was a bad idea. Joining a fight club? He could end up dead or injured or in juvie. His mother likely wouldn’t approve, his uncle definitely wouldn’t. But as Neil got ready for sleep, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to resist for long.

 

*

He held out for another couple days. And frankly, he was proud of himself for lasting that long.

By Saturday evening, Neil’s brain was practically chomping at the bit, begging him to just find Kevin and Andrew in the huge city and accept their offer. 

So he came to a decision. He would stay in Columbia and ‘train’ under Kevin (which was sure to be a nightmare, judging by the last two encounters with the pushy man). He would spar with him, maybe pick up some new skills. Then, in a couple months, he would leave, skip town before he had a chance to mess up, before his father got out of jail. It was the safest plan he could think of.

As came to that conclusion, Neil could feel his brain settle a little, taking comfort in the knowledge that soon, he’d have a chance to do the only thing he’d ever wanted to do.

He just had to talk to Andrew and Kevin. Which hadn’t exactly been pleasant so far.

Not knowing where else to go, Neil decided to head to the club from Sunday, hoping that they’d be there. If not, Neil guessed that he’d just have to skulk around alleys again and pray that he didn’t get murdered. 

As he approached the extraordinarily loud club (Eden’s Twilight, the flashing sign proclaimed. Bit pretentious but ok) Neil realized that he was very much not over 21. And the bouncers were carding. And the line stretched almost all the way down the block.

Well, fuck. So much for that.

As Neil stood dawdled awkwardly in front of the club, debating what to do, he spotted Andrew walking toward the entrance, next to a tall, handsome dark-skinned man. Wondering about Kevin’s absence, Neil called out, ‘Andrew!’

Both men stopped in their tracks and turned to look at him, puzzled expressions on their faces. As Neil walked towards them, he noticed something was wrong. Andrew’s face wasn’t…blank enough. He wore instead an expression of confused annoyance, as though he had no idea who Neil was. And his armbands were missing. Andrew didn’t strike Neil as the type to forget his knives at home.

So Kevin was missing because this wasn’t Andrew.

‘Who are you?’ the look-alike demanded, looking Neil up and down.

‘Um Neil. Who are you?’ Only after the words left Neil’s mouth did he realize that this man must be Andrew’s twin. It was the only logical explanation.

‘None of your business.’ Neil would’ve recoiled at the rudeness if he were another person. As it was he just lifted an eyebrow and turned to the other man, who was grinning widely and sticking out a hand for Neil to shake.

‘Don’t mind Aaron, he’s perpetually grumpy.’ Ignoring the dirty glare he got for that, Nicky shook Neil’s hand and said, ‘I’m Nicky Hemmick, Andrew’s cousin. How do you know Andrew?’

Silently wondering how Nicky could be related to the short, blonde-haired, hazel-eyed twins, Neil replied, ‘I met him and Kevin a couple days ago. I, um, have some things to discuss with them.’

Nicky’s face fell a little. ‘Fight club stuff or raven stuff?’

‘...fight club.’ Neil was really starting to wonder about the raven thing. Surely everyone wasn’t so worked up about the bird. 

Nicky nodded. ‘We’ll take you in to see them. C’mon Aaron.’

‘What if Andrew doesn’t want to see him?’ Aaron asked, looking a bit worried.

‘He’ll handle it.’ Nicky then turned and strode confidently past the line of waiting, black-clad club-goers and through the club entrance.

Aaron grumbled under his breath a little, eyeing Neil suspiciously, but followed his cousin into the club, nodding to the bouncers as he went. Neil furrowed his eyebrows and hurried after them. He didn’t have much time to contemplate the cousins’ apparent status at the club, as he was assaulted by a wall of sound.

If Neil thought the music was loud outside, it was deafening inside, the bass line throbbing through the floor and into his body, causing his heart to feel like it was shaking around in his chest. Bodies pressed against him as he followed the other two into the packed club. The only source of light was the pulsing, multi-coloured strobe lights around the dance floor, making it so that Neil couldn’t even see the faces of the people shoving against him. The whole environment made Neil feel like he couldn’t breathe.

He didn’t like clubs.

Still, Neil followed Nicky and Aaron to a table, where Kevin sat, downing shots and looking extremely drunk. ‘Ok, you can stay here and supervise Kevin. I’ll tell Andrew you’re here and he’ll talk to you when he’s on break.’ At Neil’s confused look, Nicky elaborated. ‘The three of us work here, most nights. Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. Just make sure Kevin doesn’t throw up.’ 

At Neil’s less-than-thrilled expression, Nicky laughed and ruffled Neil’s hair. As Neil fought not to flinch, Nicky said, ‘I’ll see you later, cutie.’ He winked and walked off, following Aaron, who had gotten impatient and left a while ago.

Neil sighed. This wasn’t exactly how he expected his night to go, sitting in a noisy club, taking care of an intoxicated ‘Kevin Day’ and waiting. Kevin seemed too drunk to speak normally, simply muttering to himself about ‘riko’ and ‘master’ and ‘raven.’ Neil hoped he’d get a raven explanation soon.

Neil froze when a certain word, or name rather, left Kevin’s mouth.

Moriyama.

What?

_What?_

Neil’s breath quickened, sharp inhales scraping the insides of lungs as he began to panic. What- what did Kevin have to do with the Moriyamas? Was this a trap?

‘Kevin. What did you just say?’ Maybe heard wrong. He had to have heard wrong.

‘Neil? What are ‘ou doin’ here?’ Kevin slurred, apparently only just noticing that he wasn’t alone.

‘Who are the Moriyamas, Kevin?’ Neil struggled to keep his voice even.

Kevin’s eyes darkened, a storm brewing in his haunted green eyes even through the haze of too much alcohol. He reflexively drew his left hand to his chest in protection. For the first time, Neil could see the jagged scars etched into the back of it, trailing from his knuckles to the back of his wrist. They looked painful. They looked recent.

Then, Neil realized that Kevin had never answered him. Glancing up, he saw Kevin’s distant eyes, his mouth drawn into a grimace, entranced by a memory only he was privy too. 

Seeing that, Neil knew he wasn’t mistaken. Kevin was involved with the Moriyamas, the powerful gang leaders who ruled the entire eastern coast of the country. The same Moriyamas who employed his father.

He had to get out of here. He had to escape, had to run, as far away as he could possibly get.

As Neil started to get up, began to abandon any hope of surviving, let alone living, Andrew appeared.

‘Going somewhere, Josten?’

Feeling lost, Neil said nothing. Andrew raised a pale eyebrow, turning to look at Kevin.

‘Kevin.’ The man instantly snapped out of his stupor, glancing around desperately, before his eyes settled on Andrew and he relaxed a bit.

‘What?’ he snapped, showing no signs of his dark mood from only moments before.

Andrew elected to ignore this, his sharp gaze returning to Neil. ‘What were you talking about?’ He kept his tone casual but his dark gaze betrayed his suspicion.

Dimly, Neil wondered how he always managed to make Andrew suspicious.

‘What are the ravens?’ Neil asked in return, trying his hardest to not give away how invested he was in the answer. His voice was shaking imperceptibly. Andrew looked at him for a moment and then sat next to Kevin, who had resumed his drunken mumbling.

‘You want to take Kevin’s offer.’ It wasn’t a question. Neil nodded anyway. He tried to remember that he could leave whenever he wanted to.

Andrew rolled his eyes. ‘Predictable. Junkie.’ Before Neil could respond, Andrew continued. ‘Stick around, rabbit, maybe you’ll find out.’ And then he downed a shot and left, leaving Neil more befuddled than ever.

Plus he was pretty sure Andrew was underage. And worked at a club.

For a moment Neil was surprised that Andrew was willing to leave him alone with Kevin. Then he turned and saw Andrew watching him from behind the bar with a hawk-like stare.

 

*

 

It was approaching 3 am now and Neil wasn’t scared or panicked anymore.

He was pissed.

He’d had to take Kevin to the bathroom to throw up twice now and had to drag him from the dance floor a couple times too. Somehow, his criticizing nature had survived the intoxication and he’d spent the time he wasn’t downing shots critiquing everything from Neil’s fighting stance to his delayed responses.

He didn’t seem to care that they’d fought exactly one time.

Neil was tempted to prove his fighting skills to Kevin’s drunk ass on the sidewalk outside but he refrained, knowing that he’d just end up with a knife in his gut courtesy of Andrew.

Right as he was reaching his breaking point, the twins and Nicky all came to retrieve him, the latter looking a bit tipsy despite the fact that he was supposed to be working. Neil was coming to the realization that this family did not care for rules very much.

Andrew didn’t pause on his way past the table, expecting the rest to follow him. And follow they did. Neil noticed immediately that the group seemed to revolve around Andrew and his wishes. He guessed that with Andrew’s attitude and knives, it wasn’t too hard to enforce his will. It reminded Neil of his father.

Immediately shaking that unwanted thought from his head, he followed the group, blindly hoping that Andrew would give him the answers he was desperate for, without significant maiming.

The five of them heaped into a jet-black, expensive-looking car and drove off, Andrew at the wheel, erratic driving not at all matching his apathetic facial expression. Kevin had insisted loudly that he was riding shotgun, leaving Neil squashed uncomfortably between Nicky and Aaron. Aaron was leaning as far away from Neil as he possibly could. Neil was pretty sure Nicky was flirting with him.

It was not a comfortable drive.

On the way to the house, Nicky informed Neil that they were going to the house that the cousins owned. 

‘Yeah when the twins’ mom died I took over as their guardian. That was pretty rece-‘

‘Nicky, shut up,’ Aaron snapped. Simultaneously, Andrew shot Nicky a deadly glare through the rear-view mirror, causing him to immediately clam up. So that was all the information Neil got from that source.

When they arrived at the small two-story house, Andrew abandoned Nicky to drag a half-conscious Kevin into the house, glancing at Neil and entering the house. Taking this as his cue, Neil followed, wandering through a sparsely decorated hallway and living room. The house was a bit depressing, all plain walls and worn furniture.

Not that Neil could talk, of course.

He joined Andrew on the back porch, passing through a sliding door in the living room. Pulling out a pack of cigarettes, Andrew sat on the porch stairs, lighting one and taking a deep inhale. Cautiously, Neil sat next to him, leaving a sizable gap in between them. Neil looked to Andrew expectantly but he remained silent, staring ahead at the tiny lawn.

Neil decide to take the dive himself, seeing as he was the one who wanted information. Starting easy, he asked, ‘Who are the Moriyamas? Kevin mentioned them earlier.’

Andrew glanced at Neil for a moment before gazing straight ahead again. ‘Don’t play games. You know who the Moriyamas are.’

When Neil froze and said nothing, fearful of being read so easily, Andrew continued, ‘So why don’t you tell me how you’re connected to them or I’ll decide you are a threat, after all.’ 

Neil gulped. He knew better than to lie at this point, so he made a deal instead. ‘If I tell you that, tell me why Kevin is so afraid of them.’

Andrew tilted his head. ‘Truth for a truth.’ Neil nodded.

‘Fine.’

Neil took a deep breath. The last time he had spoken any kid of truth about his father was Uncle Stuart. He didn’t make a habit of allowing people close enough for honesty.

‘My father works for them. Relatively low-level, in charge of drug trafficking in Baltimore. I know that’s far from the worse the Moriyamas have done though.’

‘Is that who you’re running from, rabbit?’ Andrew asked casually, unperturbed by Neil’s admission.

‘Answer my question. What did they do to Kevin?’ 

Andrew sighed. ‘They broke his hand.’ He paused to take a drag of his cigarette. ‘The Moriyamas have money in the fight club business. They invest in fighters, train them, reap the benefits. Kevin was one of theirs. Until Riko Moriyama got jealous.’ Andrew shrugged as if to say what can you do?

Neil gaped a little. The situation was worse than he thought. His father’s employers were directly involved in not only Kevin’s life, but also in the entire fight club business (which he didn’t know was even a thing until now). It was suicidal to even consider staying, to consider taking Kevin’s offer.

But.

It was doubtful that the Moriyamas knew who he was, let alone cared about him enough to hurt him.

He was leaving in three months anyway.

His father was in jail, for god’s sake. 

‘Are you going to run? Kevin will be disappointed.’ Andrew didn’t look like he cared either way but it was better to make sure.

‘Are you going to let me? Without stabbing me?’ Neil added a pointed glance to Andrew’s ever-present armband for effect. His pride didn’t want to ask Andrew for permission but it was better to keep the number of people gunning for him to a minimum..

‘It doesn’t matter to me. You’re a coward, not a threat.’ Neil was about to snap back but Andrew was already outing his cigarette and heading inside. Before he disappeared, he added, ‘You’ll meet Wymack tomorrow.’ Then he was gone, leaving Neil to stare at the sky absently and wonder who Wymack was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is literally twice the length of chapter one. Anyway Thanks to everyone who read this and everyone who commented and left kudos it really made my day. Hope you enjoyed!


	3. Chapter 3

Neil didn’t sleep well that night. For hours, he tossed and turned on the small couch that he’d been offered (forced) to sleep on. The couch was far more comfortable than sleeping bags on cold, cement floors, but that wasn’t the reason he had a hard time falling asleep. 

No, all night he was haunted by his dead mother’s voice screaming, her ghost hands yanking at his hair, angry nails seeming to scrape against his cheeks. She would hate him for this. For trusting, even a little, for trying to find something that mattered to him. She would yell, she would scold and hit until he got the message.

But she wasn’t here. Not anymore. Not ever again.

He fought to ignore the whispers in his head, telling him how stupid he was being, that he had to run and run far, where no one could ever find him again. Where his father couldn’t find him.

Instead, he rolled over and attempted to doze off, despite the four strangers also within the foreign, untrustworthy walls.

 

*

 

Even the lack of proper sleep couldn't break Neil's ingrained habit of waking up before dawn. Cracking his eyes open, he took in the unfamiliar room, instinctively tensing up before he remembered the events of the night before. Exhaling heavily, he sat up, dragging a hand down his face. The stress and anxiety from the night before hadn't been dissolved by sleep; on the contrary, all the voices telling him to _run, run, run _were clamoring in his head louder than ever.__

__He decided to listen to them, to an extent, at least. Neil weaved his way through the cluster of beanbag chairs and sofas toward the door, where he pulled on his worn sneakers and quietly slipped through the door. After a few brief stretches in the driveway, Neil set off._ _

__As usual, Neil's mind grew quiet as the pain stretching its way through his muscles became louder. The sensation of sweat rolling down the side of his face replaced that of harsh fingers sliding through his hair; the sound of his feet slapping against the pavement drowning out the crack of a palm against his face. By the time the sun appeared at the horizon, Neil's body was humming with exertion, his mind completely numbed._ _

__Even as Neil ran through the relatively empty Columbia streets, he continually reminded himself that this wasn't permanent. He could leave whenever he wanted to; he swore no oath to Andrew and his people. The first sign of danger, Neil was gone. The thought helped soothe him and when he returned to the house, he was calm._ _

__It was still early when he cracked open the door, so Neil didn't expect anyone else in the house to be awake. Still, he wasn't entirely surprised to find Andrew sitting on a beanbag chair, hands curled around a cup of coffee, judging by the smell filtering through the still house. Without a word, Neil kicked his shoes off and followed the scent of fresh coffee to the kitchen. His search was rewarded with the sight of a freshly brewed pot of coffee on the counter. He poured a cup for himself, not bothering to search for sugar or milk, instead savoring the bitter taste as it slid down his throat._ _

__So preoccupied with the simple luxury he hadn't had access to in years, he almost missed the quiet, cat-like footsteps behind him. Turning to face Andrew's heavy gaze, Neil spoke first._ _

__'You thought I wasn't coming back.'_ _

__Andrew just raised one eyebrow, as if saying _can you blame me?__ _

__Neil attempted to quash his flaring temper, discomfited and angered by Andrew's piercing, analysing gaze. He wanted to say something, demand Andrew stop looking at him like he was trying to extract all his secrets. He stayed quiet though, schooling his face to a neutral expression, though it hardly rivaled Andrew's unnervingly empty features._ _

__'So, who's Wymack?' Neil asked._ _

__After a long pause, Andrew answered the question. 'Our coach.'_ _

__'Oh.' Neil nodded slowly, not too enthused by the idea of meeting new people who could probably beat the shit out of him. 'So Nicky and Aaron are in the fight club too?'_ _

__Andrew's lip curled in scorn. 'Don't call it that.'_ _

__'What should I call it then?'_ _

__In lieu of an answer, Andrew turned and walked out of the kitchen. A few moments later, he could hear footsteps ascending the stairs._ _

__Neil sighed. Getting information from the rude bastard was like pulling teeth._ _

__After putting his empty mug in the sink, Neil returned to the couch. Despite the caffeine now flowing through his veins, the fatigue worming through his sore body and exhausted mind soon worn out and he sank into a slumber once again._ _

__

__*_ _

__

__Neil awoke a few hours later to a hand on his shoulder, shaking him. Terror clogged his throat immediately, cold dread racing through his veins._ _

__Before Neil’s eyes were fully open, he was yanking a knife from his waistband and kicking out desperately in the direction of the arm. His foot struck its mark easily, hitting a narrow chest. A half-second later, the sound of the body hitting the floor rewarded Neil’s ears. Acting quickly, he clambered off the armchair and straddled the unresistant body, placing the knife against the stranger’s throat._ _

__Only then did Neil look at the face of his ‘attacker.’ Shit._ _

__Sighing, he removed himself from on top of Nicky, whose eyes were widened in fright. He seemed paralyzed with fear and he was breathing hard._ _

__‘I’ve got to stop doing that,’ Neil muttered to himself, holding out his hand for Nicky to grasp, who hesitated for a moment before pulling himself to his feet, somewhat shakily. He supposed that answered the question of whether Nicky participated in the same activities as his cousin. A resounding _no. _____

____Nicky seemed a bit hesitant before taking Neil's hand and pulling himself from the ground._ _ _ _

____'Um...sorry about that,' Neil muttered, running his hand through his hair awkwardly. Apologizing wasn't really his thing. For that matter, talking to people at all wasn't really his thing._ _ _ _

____Nicky smiled shakily. 'No worries. Sort of used to that kind of thing, in this house.' At Neil's inquiring gaze, Nicky just shook his head. 'Don't worry about it,' he repeated. 'Anyway, I came to wake you up for breakfast.' Nicky grinned. 'I prepared my special chocolate pancakes to celebrate our newest arrival.'_ _ _ _

____Neil's eyebrows raised. As if on cue, Neil's stomach growled at the thought of real, _cooked-on-a-stove _food. Nicky just grinned wider at the sound. 'Well, come on, cutie.' With that, Nicky practically skipped to the kitchen.___ _ _ _

______Someone had recovered from having a knife held to their throat. Neil just sighed and followed Nicky at a much slower pace, hoping Nicky wouldn't mention the incident to his cousin._ _ _ _ _ _

______Standing in the kitchen doorway for a second, Neil took in the scene before him. Andrew was perched on the counter-top, smoking a cigarette and blowing the smoke out of the open kitchen window. Aaron sat at the table staring into space while shoveling forkfuls of pancake into his mouth. Nicky was at the stove, dishing out some pancakes, presumably for Neil. Finally, Kevin was leaning on the counters, nursing a cup of coffee and looking extremely annoyed, which could just be his default._ _ _ _ _ _

______'How can you guys eat this stuff?' Kevin demanded, eyeing the pancakes with disgust and a little bit of suspicion. 'It's incredibly bad for you and you're athletes. You have to be prepared to cut fattening foods out of your diet to improv-'_ _ _ _ _ _

______'Kevin.' Andrew said flatly, smoke billowing out of the side of his mouth._ _ _ _ _ _

______'What, you know I'm right. Also, the smoking, Andre-'_ _ _ _ _ _

______'You know... I doubt you need a tongue to fight,' the blonde said casually._ _ _ _ _ _

______Kevin shut up at that, though a scowl still painted his face._ _ _ _ _ _

______Neil navigated the small kitchen filled with people to find a seat at the breakfast table. Fortunately everyone pretty much ignored him, except Nicky of course, who placed the plate of pancakes in front of him. He began eating, trying to ignore the somewhat uncomfortable atmosphere of the kitchen as well as the over-sweetness of the more-chocolate-than-pancake pancakes._ _ _ _ _ _

______'So, Neil, where are you from?' Nicky inquired with a wink._ _ _ _ _ _

______Neil had a whole host of answers for that question, ranging from the half-home, half-crackden house in Baltimore to the cold, dark, abandoned warehouse in the industrial district of Columbia. He wasn't willing to give any of them to Nicky. Instead, Neil just blinked at Nicky._ _ _ _ _ _

______'Wait, where do you go to school?' Aaron suddenly asked, frowning at Neil._ _ _ _ _ _

______Neil stiffened under the sudden scrutiny from the least likely source. Kevin turned to him as well, as if he hadn't considered this._ _ _ _ _ _

______'Why?'_ _ _ _ _ _

______'Well, you're about our age, right? And there's only one public high school in Columbia. But I've never seen you around our school.' His voice was laced with confusion and suspicion, the first bit of interest in Neil that Aaron had shown so far._ _ _ _ _ _

______After a moment of contemplation, Neil decided to stretch the truth, as he usually did._ _ _ _ _ _

______'I'm eighteen. And I don't go to school.' It seemed as if Andrew hadn't shared the fact that Neil lived in a warehouse with his family. Neil couldn't think of a reason that Andrew would hang on to that piece of information._ _ _ _ _ _

______Regardless, Aaron and Nicky were shocked by Neil's words. Even Kevin looked liked he expected Neil to find a way to attend school when he could barely afford food most of the time._ _ _ _ _ _

______'So, you're home-schooled, then?' Neil almost laughed at that, amused by how unwilling Nicky was to believe someone might not have access to something as simple as school. As it was, he was too busy constructing a believable story in his mind, one which would include all the pieces of his story that he had shared with Andrew, that would hopefully get the others off his back for a while._ _ _ _ _ _

______'No, I just don't go to school. Since my parents kicked me out.' He shrugged, looking down at his lap, as if ashamed. Again, it wasn't a total lie. His mother _had _told him to leave the house, after all. Right before she died, as she lay on the floor, gasping for breath, gripping his hand-___ _ _ _ _ _

________Neil shook himself from his memories. When he fixated himself in reality again, Nicky was staring at him with pity and sadness and maybe a little bit of understanding. He looked like he was about to cry._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________'So you're...homeless?' Nicky's voice shook, leaving Neil confused as to why Nicky was so affected by this. Meanwhile, Andrew was staring at Neil with an intent, heavy gaze._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Neil shrugged again. 'Yeah, I guess.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________'Well we have to do something. We have to get you somewhere to live. Maybe you can stay here, go to school with the twins? Here, do you want some more food? I can make-' Nicky started babbling off ways that he could help Neil. Neil was almost touched by Nicky's frantic suggestions. Almost._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________'Nicky.' Kevin cleared his throat, cutting Nicky off before he could offer to give Neil his life savings. 'We'll let Wymack handle it.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Nicky's face cleared and he nodded. Neil shifted in his seat, furrowing his eyebrows. These people seemed pretty willing to hand him over to some faceless 'trainer'._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________'That won't be necessary. I'm fine.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Kevin hummed. Nicky looked distraught. Aaron looked uncomfortable in the face of Neil's tragedy. Andrew wasn't looking at any of them._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Eager to escape the conversation, Neil changed the subject. 'When are we leaving?'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Andrew slid down from the counter. 'Five minutes,' he said, walking from the room, ignoring the grumbles of protests from the others about their unfinished breakfasts. Neil had barely eaten, hadn't brushed his teeth or washed himself. Still, he hurriedly attempted to finish his sugary pancakes, more than relieved to leave this strange house._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________*_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Another uncomfortable car ride later, Andrew pulled the car up alongside a small rundown building crammed between a corner-store and a tiny coffee-shop. Building was actually too kind a word for it; no windows were visible, only a wooden door, painted a filthy brownish-orange color. The structure seemed only a couple of feet wide, hardly enough to contain a couple of people standing side by side._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The others seemed unperturbed by Neil's perplexion. As the five of them piled out of the car and headed towards the door, Neil's confusion shifted to wariness. If the others were planning on murdering him and harvesting him for parts, this is exactly the kind of place they would do it in. Kevin caught sight of Neil beginning to shift backwards, preparing to sneak off without their noticing and rolled his eyes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________'Calm down, it's not as bad as it looks. Coach will explain everything to you.' With that he pulled out a set of keys from his pocket and unlocked the battered door. Behind the door lay a relatively wide, dim corridor, painted a dirty off-white color, which was almost completely hidden beneath the dark scuff marks and unidentifiable cream stains. Neil wrinkled his nose as he followed behind the others at a distance, still prepared to make a run for it if necessary. As it turned out, it wasn't._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Kevin strode down the long hallway and punched in a code to an out-of-place keypad next to a narrow white door. At the responding _click _of the door, he opened it and stepped through, leaving Neil to take in the large, brightly lit room beyond.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________The sheer size of the room shocked Neil, who didn't expect it at the end of such a dingy corridor. It must open out behind the neighboring buildings, maybe about half the size of the main chamber of Neil's warehouse. Despite this, the ceiling was fairly low, causing bright, fluorescent lights to bounce against the orange floors. And that was another thing, the _orange. _The white of the walls wasn't quite enough to overshadow the orange lockers covering the far wall, the orange punching bags in two rows leading to an orange door on the other side labelled 'Changing Rooms.' On Neil's left side, he saw a boxing ring and an MMA cage, both orange and white; on his right was a bare area, beyond which was a wall of mirrors and another orange door. Not even the fluorescent lights which only emphasized the blinding color scheme could ruin Neil's shocked delight.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________He'd only seen most of this stuff on TV, not exactly having access to expensive equipment in the basement of his father's house._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________'Pick your jaw up off the ground, Josten. It's embarrassing.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________With that comment from Andrew, Neil was drawn from his stupor. The others were looking at him with expressions ranging from delight (Nicky) to scorn (Andrew). Snapping his jaw shut, he cleared his throat.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________'Right.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Kevin looked a bit satisfied even as he rolled his eyes again. He turned to lead the group to the door on the right. Neil once again followed, attempting to keep his gaping to a minimum. The door lead out to another hallway, this one leading to three more rooms and a stairway on the far end. For now though, Kevin simply rapped once on the door directly opposite the one that they had just come through. Cracking the door open and sticking his head through, Kevin said, 'Hey Coach, we brought in the rookie I told you about.' Any indignation Neil felt about Kevin calling him 'rookie' (even if it was technically true) faded when Kevin opened the door wider and ushered Neil inside._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Most of the small room beyond was taken up by either the large, cluttered desk or the larger, dark-skinned man standing behind it with tattooed arms folded. Neil's first instinct upon seeing such a muscular, middle-aged man was of course to flee, his mind reacting to the scowl painting the man's face, nearly backing into Andrew as he tried to put some distance between him and the man he presumed to be Wymack. He got a hold of himself before he did something stupid though, bottling up his flight reflexes and shoving it down._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Upon seeing Neil's instinctual fear, Wymack's scowl softened imperceptibly._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________'Great, another midget.' Wymack shook his head. 'Although I suppose height doesn't count for that much.' Wymack pointed a glance at Andrew before holding a hand out for Neil to shake. 'I'm David Wymack.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Barely resisting the urge to recoil, Neil just looked at the extended hand and said, 'Neil.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Wymack sighed and understanding filled his eyes. He looked at Kevin and Andrew. 'Give us a minute.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Neil harbored no trust for the two teens who left the room silently but he was nearly sad to see them go._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Wymack turned to him again once the door was firmly shut behind him. 'Look, kid, I recognize the look in your eye. You don't have to worry about me.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Neil remained silent._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Thankfully, Wymack took the cue to change the subject. 'Kevin also told me that you have housing difficulties,' he said, looking Neil directly in the eye._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Yeah that's one way to describe being fucking homeless. Again, Neil said nothing._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Wymack sighed. 'Yeah, I figured. So if you're sure you want to go through with this I have some stuff I need you to sign.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Neil finally spoke up at this. 'I thought this whole fight club thing was illegal.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Wymack grimaced at 'fight club.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________'The _underground fighting ring _might be illegal but my gym is not. This is a completely legitimate business, albeit a private one, exclusively for fighters.' Wymack fixed Neil with a stern look. 'You have to be eighteen to be a member. I don't recruit children to fight.'___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Well. Neil was lying about basically every other factor of his life, he may as well continue lying about this as well._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________'Yes, sir.' Wymack eyed him for a second then handed him some forms to fill out for his 'gym membership.' After taking a moment to truly take in the ridiculousness of the situation, Neil got started, entering random data for some of the questions, nearly all of it false. The only thing he kept was his middle name, hoping to have something to keep him anchored to reality. He only paused when he came upon a question asking whether he was a student._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He could just check no and move on. But._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________'Um. I don't go to school.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________'Well I'd imagine not.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Neil decided to not be offended at this, observing the man's naturally gruff nature. Instead he stared at Wymack, trying not to look _too _pitiful.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________Wymack scanned his face. 'Do you _want _to go to school?'___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________Neil nodded slightly, a bit embarrassed to be asking for help from a complete stranger, even as subtly as he was._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________'Never thought I'd hear that from a teenager. Alright, I'll see what I can do. Leave it blank for now. You can leave address out as well if you want.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________Neil nodded again, heat rising to his face even as he struggled to not be embarrassed at his goddamn 'housing situation.' He hurriedly filled out the rest of the form, noting all of his lies so he wouldn't get caught in them later. Signing 'Neil Josten' at the bottom of the page, he stood and handed the papers to Wymack. In exchange, Wymmack handed him a piece of paper with a bunch of numbers on it. Wymack explained before he could ask._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________'The password to the interior door is 36937, that's the top number for when you forget. The one below that is your locker number for your gear.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________Neil got gear? Instead of saying anything to betray the excitement creeping into his bones, Neil just nodded and turned toward the door._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________'Josten.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________Neil stopped without turning back to look at Wymack. 'Yeah?'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________'If you get tired of the warehouse...I have extra rooms upstairs. Rent-free.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________Neil furrowed his brows. The building was _much _larger than he first thought then. He struggled to swallow the temptation. As much as he would love to leave the drafty, dirty warehouse and never return, he wasn't sure he could put himself at the Wymack's mercy like that. He barely slept in the cousins' house and that was without a man similar in build and age to his father living just across the way. Plus, there was only so much charity he could accept in one day.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________When Neil stayed silent, Wymack exhaled slightly. 'The doors lock.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Neil closed his eyes, disturbed at how easily Wymack could tell what he was thinking and how quickly his resistance was crumbling._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________'Can I see them?'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________'Sure, kid.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Wymack reached into one of his drawers and pulled out a ring of keys. When he walked past Neil to leave the room, he sucked in his stomach and stuck to the other side of the doorway to ensure he didn't come into contact with Neil._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Wymack lead Neil down the hallway past the open middle door, through which he could make out a lounge, with a TV and a couple of sofas and chairs. Aaron and Nicky were arguing about something, Andrew was smoking without bothering to crack one of the three windows in the room. Kevin was in the corner seemingly practicing hooks against thin air. Neil walked by without saying word. Wymack just sighed exasperatedly, seemingly accustomed to the shenanigans._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________They walked up the stairs at the end of the hall, skipping the middle one which he was informed was a gym and came out into yet another hallway, which branched off to the right. On either side of the corridor were three doors. After the set of rooms, the corridor opened into a kitchen area, complete with a fridge, coffee machine and table._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Pointing at the three on the left side, Wymack explained, 'These are taken by me, Kevin and our nurse, Abby. So the ones on the right are free.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Kevin lived here? He supposed that made sense, after the reshuffling that was necessary at the cousins' house to get Neil a place to sleep. He could ask about it later._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________'Do you do this a lot?' Wymack just looked at him questioningly . 'Offer shelter to people, I mean.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Wymack shrugged. 'You'd be surprised at the kind of kids that come through here. All sorts of fucked up, coming from all sorts of fucked up pasts. I do what I can.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Neil nodded, privately thinking that Wymack was either lying or a madman. Either way-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Neil wandered into the last room on the right. It wasn't very big but wasn't too small for either. A single bed, a bedside table, a set of drawers, a small wardrobe, a desk and a chair fit comfortably in the space. No decorations hung on the wall but that was just fine by Neil. Instead of dwelling on the interior of the room Neil turned to examine the lock. It wasn't the most sophisticated lock but most people would be kept out, unless they were experienced lock-pickers. It was almost as though Wymack had put thought into it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Neil's personality evaluation of Wymack was leaning toward madman._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Continuing his investigation, Neil crossed over to the large window that overlooked the back of the building. A fire escape lead down into a tiny courtyard, appeasing Neil's need for an escape route at all times._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________'How can you afford this place?' Neil wondered aloud._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________'Truth be told, I can't afford much else. Those of you that can pay, you do. Those who can't-' He shrugged as if it didn't matter._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Definitely mad, then._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________'So what'll it be, kid?'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Neil took a deep breath. 'I'll take it.'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________Wymack didn't smile, he just nodded and started fiddling with the keys in his hand as Neil stood there awkwardly. Finally, Wymack separated two of the keys from the large ring in his hand and threw them at rather than to Neil, who only caught one._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________'We'll have to work on those reflexes. And those are keys to the exterior door and this one. Have fun figuring out which is which.' With that, he left the room, making for the kitchen that lay beyond the bedrooms._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________For a while, Neil stood there, staring at the keys in his hand. He knew this was temporary. At best, he was here for a couple months, at worst, a couple of days. He knew nothing in life came free, that sooner or later he would be expected to return the favor. He knew from experience that returning other people's 'kindness' never ended well for him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________________He _knew _all of that. These lessons had been drilled into his bones since the day he was born.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________________But somehow, he couldn't regret his decision. Somehow, with these keys gripped in his hand, he felt a flutter of happiness in his stomach. Somehow, even with all the unpleasant characters downstairs, with the question mark that was Coach Wymack, he felt the beginnings of _belonging _. The beginnings of _home. _______ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________Of course, these stray feelings were washed away when Kevin yelled up the stairs, 'Neil! Get your lazy ass down here and gear up. Time to redeem yourself!'_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________________________But still. It was something._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes i am terrible
> 
> anyway this chapter is finally up. hopefully a several week long pause between chapters wont happen again :/ hope you enjoy this though!
> 
> for those curious, 36937 is FOXES


	4. Chapter 4

'So..are you sure you can spar...like that?'

Kevin glared at Neil for a moment before looking away, scanning the shelves for...something. They were now in the storage room of the gym, just off the main room. Neil shifted on his feet uncomfortably.

'I mean, will it get worse? I don't think you can-'

Neil cut his sentence off when he saw the fierce scowl on Kevin's face. 'It isn't as bad as it looks. Leave it.' Neil clamped his mouth shut at the fearful determination shining in Kevin's eyes.

A moment later, Kevin pulled out a couple of boxes, each labelled in black Sharpie. Kevin opened each one in turn and inside were assorted gloves, mouth-guards and rolls of...bandages? Other boxes had some spare shorts and t-shirts. Neil stared down at all of it in perplexion. When he glanced up at Kevin, he was already halfway out the doorway.

'Try to find clothes that can actually fit you. And don't forget the groin protector.'

And with those words he left Neil to his bewilderment.

Alright. This couldn't be so hard. Neil began rifling through the nearest boxes, the one containing the clothes, seemingly made of a different material to regular clothes. Neil quickly found a pair of shorts and a t-shirt which would cling to him a bit more than his clothes. That was the easy part. Neil then turned his attention to the gloves. 

Each box was labelled something slightly different, apparently for different types of martial arts. After puzzling over it for a moment, he just grabbed the first pair that fit him from a box labelled MMA Gloves. He grabbed random contraptions from the boxes labelled Groin Protectors and Mouth-guards after ensuring they would fit him.Lastly, came to the box of rolled up fabric,which was labelled Hand Wraps. Tilting his head, he searched his head for some memory of his mother using them. Coming up blank, he just grabbed two rolls and left the room.

Walking through the door to the changing rooms and through another to the male section, Neil saw a room lined with changing stalls down one side and shower cubicles down the other. Neil quickly shut himself into the nearest stall and changed, trying to move quickly if only to avoid Kevin''s incessant yammering.

When he was finished, he made sure that every inch of his torso was covered then left the room. He threw his clothes into the locker that was _his_ ,taking a moment to absorb the bright orange paint, the slot where he was supposed to put a card with his name on it, the strange new feeling building in his chest. Then he shook himself out of his reverie and made his way over to Kevin, who was leaning against the mirrored wall, drinking from a bottle of water.

As he approached, he held out the rolls of fabric in his hand and asked, 'What am I supposed to so with this?'

Kevin stared at him as if he was an idiot. Well more so than he usually did, anyway. 'It's a hand wrap,' he said slowly.

Neil blinked.

Kevin sighed and dragged his hand over his face. 'How can you not know what that is.'

Neil frowned. 'Well not everyone had access to this shit when they were kids, you know. Not everyone was raised to be a professional fighting robot like you.'

Kevin paused for a second, looking for a moment like he was going to say something in response. Then he just glanced away and said, 'I'll do it. Come here.'

Neil approached Kevin warily, wondering if he was going to somehow be punished for his comment, but nothing painful came. Instead, Kevin grabbed his hand and the 'hand wrap' and started to wrap his hands in fluid, practiced motions, narrating the whole time.

'-then you wrap three times around the wrist, then around the hand, then-' Neil lost track of the steps before Kevin was halfway done with his first hand. Kevin didn't miss it.

'You need to learn how to do this otherwise you can sprain your wrist or break your thumb or something worse. Wymack should have an info sheet on how to do it. I won't keep babying you.'

Neil just rolled his eyes at the top of Kevin's head while he finished the job. After Kevin was done, Neil shoved on the gloves. 'I'm surprised there are so many rules. Don't these types of things not care whether fighters live or die?'

'Usually, yes. Not this one though. The- the Ravens have a lot of money in this specific ring. They can't afford anyone getting seriously hurt. Especially their own fighters.'

Neil nodded slowly. 'So the Ravens are- what? Owned by the Moriyamas?'

Kevin stiffened. 'You could say that,' he muttered. He pulled on his own gloves onto his already wrapped hands. Neil noticed that his left hand was more padded than his right, appearing noticeably larger than his uninjured one. He said nothing.

The two placed themselves in the empty area in front of the mirrored wall.

'We're just going to do one round. Whoever taps out first loses. If you get hurt, tap out. Don't do anything stupid.'

'Any style?'

'Any style.'

Neil nodded, pushing his nerves down. He knew Kevin was better than him, based on what Andrew had said about his training. He held no illusions about the outcome of this. Still, he relished in his quicker heart beats, the feeling of blood rushing through his body, the awakening of his animal instincts. _That's_ what he was here for.

He slipped the mouth-guard in and brought himself into position, feet shoulder-width apart, one in front the other, knees slightly bent. Neil was gagging on the plastic taste in his mouth when Kevin rushed him.

Kevin didn't bother to ease Neil into the sparring match. No, instead Neil was immediately forced to block a series of right-hooks aimed at his face and throat. Neil held his arms over his face and bounced backward on the balls of his feet to escape the onslaught. Not fast enough though.

Kevin quickly took advantage of his unprotected torso, ducking down and landing an elbow to his sternum. Wind knocked out of him Neil backed up slightly then retaliated with a swift uppercut to Kevin's chin. Though it hit his mark, Kevin barely slowed. Neil attempted to use his natural speed to his advantage, darting out of the way of the advancing boy at the last moment. He extended his leg as Kevin rushed past, tripping him and carrying them both down to the floor.

Neil landed on top of Kevin, elbow jammed into his throat. He attempted to pin Kevin down with his knees as well, simultaneously peppering his torso with punches. Kevin grunted slightly in pain. Neil's small form worked against him though, allowing Kevin to throw him off using his legs and climb on top of him. Kevin was heavier and larger than him, and far heavier than Mary, the only other opponent Neil had ever faced. As much as he tried, he couldn't find a way out of Kevin's grapple. Meanwhile, Kevin was kneeing him in the stomach while punching him in the side of his head. 

He couldn't find a way out. He extended his right arm and hit the floor, twice.

Kevin was immediately off him, looking down at him from a standing position. Neil braced himself for his scathing commentary.

'Barely two minutes. For someone so determined to take their opponent to the floor, you're shit at grapples. And your hooks are so weak, a fly could fight them off so extra time in the gym. I'm not even sure I want to know who taught you that choke-hold.'

Neil glared up at him and said nothing, slipping out the mouth-guard.

Kevin tilted his head consideringly. 'You're fast though, even if you don't know what to do with it.'

Of course. Even his compliments were insults.

'You should shower. I'll talk to you about your training schedule later.'

Training schedule? Who exactly had put Kevin in charge of Neil? Before he could say anything, Kevin disappeared into the hallway. So Neil just covered his eyes with his hands and groaned. 

'Word to the wise: never get Kevin on the floor. He excels at grapples.'

Neil scrambled to sit up at the unfamiliar voice. While he and Kevin had been sparring, five strangers had entered the gym unnoticed. They looked to be in their late teens or early twenties. Neil rose to his feet carefully without taking his eyes off the newcomers.

'Leave him alone, Matt. He probably gets enough advice from Kevin,' said a short-haired woman to an extremely large man. 'You did good for a rookie, rookie.'

They must be other members of Wymack's gym, judging by the ease with which they had entered the gym. That was the logical explanation. It didn't stop Neil's brain to remind him of how overwhelmingly they outnumbered him.

'How do you know I'm a rookie?'

The woman laughed, 'Don't worry kid. Wymack called me up and mentioned we have a newbie, that's all.' She stepped forward. 'I'm Dan, nice to meet you.' She held out her hand.

Neil studied it for a second and then shook it. 'Neil.'

Another woman sauntered forward and looked him up and down. 'Hm, better-looking than I expected. This gym is in desperately need of some eye-candy.' She flipped her waist-length,blonde hair over her shoulder, a fierce glint visible in her eye. Neil was a little intimidated if he was being honest. 'Allison Reynolds.' She flashed a sharp grin at Neil, who just nodded and shifted on his feet, eager for the introductions potion of the day to be over.

'I'm Matt,' the giant said appearing at Dan's shoulder, grinning widely. He shook Neil's hand quickly and pulled away though not fast enough for Neil not to notice the semi-recent track marks on his arms. It wasn't Neil's business though. 'That's Renee and Seth.'

The woman pointed out as Renee gave him a small smile and a smaller wave. Neil got a...strange vibe from this woman. Something in the way she held herself, something held in the bottom of her dark eyes. It reminded him of...someone. Nevertheless, Neil resolved to keep away until he figured it out.

Seth, on the other hand, seemed completely disinterested in the proceedings. He spared Neil a glare and then went back to scowling at Allison's back. Not interested in the issues of this group of people, Neil just nodded once more in acknowledgement and said, 'Nice to meet you,' with a fake smile.

They didn't seem to notice. 'We go to a university not far from here, so you'll probably see a lot of us. Are you staying here?' Dan inquired. She seemed to be asking more than one question. Neil nodded once.

'Well if you have any questions about the gym or the ring, feel free to ask us.'

'Shh, you're not supposed to talk about it,' Matt whispered dramatically, glancing around.

'Why not?' Neil responded, looking around for some threat as well. Matt just looked at him for a moment then beamed. 

'You don't know Fight Club? Babe, he doesn't know Fight Club! That means I can show it to him!' He directed the last bit at Dan, who rolled her eyes.

'Everyone's tired of that joke, Matt. And let him adjust before you shove dumb movies down his throat.'

Matt pouted. 'It's not dumb, but fine.' 

As for Neil, he had no idea what the two were talking about. He had a feeling that it had something to do with why the others were so against the term 'fight club.' Allison and Seth were now muttering to each other and Renee was looking at him strangely so he took the moment to excuse himself to the showers.

Luckily, the shower stalls had doors on them, so Neil could take his time to really enjoy the hot water. He hadn't had a proper shower for years, not since his days of living with his uncle. His uncle. He considered calling him, but decided against it. Stuart told him not to say his location over the phone just in case. Plus Stuart would most likely scold him, then buy him a one-way ticket to England. He didn't really want to deal with that.

Neil blew out a breath and tried to relax under the hot spray. He'd had a tough day: he was ready to call it a day and go sleep in his new room upstairs but he still had to get his stuff from the warehouse, before another homeless person found it and decided it was their lucky day. For the moment though, Neil just let the heat sink into his aching muscles, let the water run over his forming bruises. He didn't mind the ache so much though. He savored it actually; all the painful parts of his body reminded him that he was alive.

 

*

 

When he was finished with his shower, he stuck his head into the lounge. He could now see the bookshelves that lined the wall to the left of the doorway while on the right were the clusters of chairs and couches arranged around the TV. Several photographs were hung on the wall all the way to the right. The room gave off a very cozy feeling, and reminded Neil somewhat of the basement in his old house where he and his mom had stayed so much of the time.

When he peeked in he saw Andrew's lot on one side and Seth, Allison and Renee having their own conversation on the other side. Matt and Dan were missing, likely talking to Wymack about something. 

'Hey, uh, can one of you take me to get my stuff from...my place?' Neil asked.

Renee spoke first. 'Sorry, Neil, we all came in Matt's truck. We could wait for him and Dan to come back, if you like.'

'Nah, it's fine, I can do it, if Andrew lends me his keys.' Nicky turned to Andrew, who was now smoking out of the window. Andrew glanced at Nicky, then over to Neil and threw the car keys to Nicky. 

“Break it and I break you.'

'Yeah, yeah. Come on, Neil.' Nicky strolled out of the room, evidently expecting Neil to follow. After a moment, Neil did.

Neil situated himself in the passenger seat of Andrew's car, which was far more comfortable without five people crammed into it, while Nicky started the ignition.

'So, um, where are you staying, Neil?' Nicky asked, pity and sympathy shining through his eyes. Neil sighed at the sight of it.

'I'll just give you directions.' They were currently in downtown Columbia and it wasn't too hard to get to the industrial district from there. 'So, am I correct in assuming you're not part of the fighting thing?'

Nicky laughed, 'Oh yeah, is it that obvious? What can I say, I'm a lover, not a fighter.' Nicky grinned. 'Pretty much all my friends are in it though so I may as well sign up.'

'So you're friends with the others then? Matt and Dan and the rest.'

Nicky's smile faltered a bit. 'Maybe not as much as I'd like to be. But ah well.'

Neil didn't inquire any further. He noticed that Nicky seemed a bit different when he wasn't surrounded by people. Not more serious, necessarily, but more ...truthful.

'Take the next left,' he said.

Most of the twenty minute drive to the warehouse was filled with Nicky chattering about something that happened in the club or in some video game he played with Aaron. Neil didn't mind as much as he thought he would; it made for amusing background noise and Nicky didn't seemed to need any response from him. He quieted down a little when the streets began to line with warehouses and abandoned businesses rather than groceries and clubs and restaurants. When Neil told Nicky to stop, Nicky was completely quiet. Neil didn't know how to comfort someone about _his_ homelessness, so he just left the car and walked into the warehouse.

It was a strange experience, walking into the warehouse he had lived in for months, after what he had seen, after what he had done. It hadn't even been 24 hours since Neil was last here but in that time, his life had flipped completely upside down. It seemed like it was an improvement, at least for now. He just had to hope he didn't regret it. 

He walked into the back room to retrieve his duffel and sleeping bag, making sure to look for footprints or anything else out of place. He kept his hand on the knife in his waistband but everything was as he had left it. He packed up all his stuff, strapping the sleeping bag to his bag and made his way back outside.

When Neil reentered the car, throwing the duffel in the back, he turned to face Nicky and indicated they could go. They had barely gotten down the street when Nicky spoke.

'It upsets me because I used to think I was going to get kicked out too.' 

Neil paused then asked, '..why?'

'When my parents found out I'm gay...let's just say they weren't thrilled.'

'That's stupid.'

Nicky laughed humorlessly. 'I'm glad you think so.'

Neil stared out of the window and said nothing more. He didn't understand why Nicky would tell a near-stranger such personal things. Then again he didn't understand people like Nicky, people who gave over their secrets and trust and friendship like nothing. It was dangerous. But he suspected it made Nicky, Nicky.

By the time they returned to the gym, Nicky had returned to his regular, cheerful self.

 

*

 

The rest of the day passed fairly uneventfully; tired of social interaction, Neil closed himself up into his room, making sure the door was locked. Since it was a Sunday, Wymack left him alone, saying they could start official training the next day.

In the absence of anything to occupy him, Neil climbed onto the fire escape, pack of cigarettes and lighter in hand. Lighting one, he let the smoke wash over him and thought over the events of the day. His life had changed more than he thought possible in such a short amount of time. He had a proper bed now, a place to eat, more acquaintances than he knew what to do with.

He didn't know what to make of the others. Going on what Wymack had said about the people who had passed through the gym, they probably all had some baggage of some sort. He recalled what Nicky had said in the car, Kevin's hand, Andrew and his knives. Life was cruel and it seemed like they all knew it.

As for the older group that he had just met...they seemed friendly, for the most part. Neil didn't know what to do with friendly. He could argue that he had never known a friendly person in his life. Add to that the strange animosity between them and Andrew's group...Neil wasn't sure how to interact with any of them.

He supposed that wouldn't be such a problem, anyway. He only had to tolerate them for a couple of months and then he was gone. He wasn't there to make friends, he was there to fight.

He took a long drag of the cigarette to keep it burning and then held it under his nose, leaning his chest against the railing in front of him, holding in a wince when it pressed into the bruised spot on his sternum. Staring down into the courtyard below, Neil heard a soft thump from above him. Instantly alert, he glanced up.

Of course it was Andrew. The boy had apparently been sitting on the roof the whole time, feet dangling off the edge and hitting into the brick wall above Neil's head. 

'Do you ever get tired of lying in wait for people?'

'What makes you think I was waiting for you?' Andrew retorted, taking a drag of his own cigarette, ash falling from his cigarette and past Neil's face. Neil brushed it away and scowled.

'You're right. Lurking on rooftops for no reason _does_ seem in character for you.' He faced forward again, debating on whether or not he should just go inside.

'Got a mouth on you, do you, Josten?'

'I don't,' Neil said quickly, remembering the quiet persona he was supposed to be keeping up, for the sake of remaining invisible. Though he had probably thrown _not being noticed_ out of the window the moment he jumped Kevin in an alley.

'I don't believe you.'

Neil's heart sped up a little. 'I'm not something for you to solve, you know.'

Andrew hit his shoe into the wall again. 'Maybe I'll do it anyway.'

Neil said nothing. Andrew didn't seem like he would be deterred. He just had to hope he was long gone before Andrew could find out anything substantial about him. Instead he stubbed out his cigarette and crawled back through the window and into his room, resolving not to leave it for the rest of the day.

He held to that, spending the evening investigating his room and lying in bed, content to do nothing after the exhausting day. Neil left only once, creeping out of his room to get a bottle of water from the fridge. He was half-way there when he realized he wasn't doing anything wrong. He went back to his room and didn't bother to leave for dinner, instead knocking out early and sleeping through the night.

 

*

 

In the morning, Neil was awoken by an urgent knock on the door. Leaping out of bed, hand on his knife, he asked, 'Who's there?'

'It's me, Josten. Meeting, lounge, two minutes.' Wymack sounded serious as his heavy footsteps tracked away from the door. Neil frowned.

He had awoken at the normal hour and gone for his run despite the pain in his sore body, slipping out of the gym while everyone slept. The pain was nothing to what he had gone through in his past; it wasn't nearly enough to slow him. When he returned, he had showered and returned to his welcoming bed, falling asleep instantly.

Glancing at the alarm clock now, he saw that it was near 10 in the morning. He had slept for longer than he expected.

He quickly made his way downstairs to the lounge. Everyone was already there, Matt, Allison and Dan occupying a couch on one side of the room, Seth and Renee in armchairs next to them. Andrew and his people were strewn over a love-seat and a couple of chairs on the opposite side of the room. Wymack was standing in front of the television, evidently waiting for Neil to arrive. The atmosphere in the room was tense, expressions ranging from worry to blatant disinterest.

As Neil sat in a seat in the corner, Wymack opened his mouth.

'Alright, I have some bad news.' His voice was gruff and he looked angry and indignant. Neil instinctively avoided eye contact as the man surveyed the room. 'Riko found us.'

The room broke out into alarmed shouts, whispers and strangely, laughter. Most of the eyes in the room pointed towards Kevin, whose face was rapidly turning white. Neil had reflexively tensed when Wymack spoke before he realized he had no idea what anyone was talking about.

'Quiet down, assholes. Don't panic just yet.'

'Hey Kevin, ready to see your brother again?' Seth taunted, causing Kevin to clench his jaw tightly, clenching his fists tightly in his lap.

'Seth,' Wymack said warningly. Seth just looked immensely pleased with himself.

'Wait,' Dan piped up, 'How do you know he found us?'

Wymack sighed. 'There was a letter left under the door this morning.' 

This prompted another wave of chattering. Neil debated the right time to speak up about his cluelessness.

From across the room, Neil took in Kevin's behavior, terror evident in the straightness of his spine, the emphasized lines of his face, his trembling hands. The ink on his left cheek stood out against his pale skin. Neil watched as Andrew reached over and grabbed Kevin's jaw tightly in his hand, forcing him to look at him.

'Do you think I'm a liar, Kevin?' Andrew asked, tilting his head. His eyes looked as empty as ever.

'N-no, but you kno-'

'Do you believe me when I say I'll protect you?' When Kevin said nothing, Andrew squeezed his jaw a little. 'It's a yes or no question, Kev.'

'Yes. Yes I believe you.' Kevin let out a shuddering breath.

'Good.' Andrew let go of Kevin, patting his cheek twice, and looked at Wymack, ignoring the quiet observers. 'What did the letter say?'

'Nothing important. Aimless threats, mostly directed at Kevin. I threw it away, already, before you ask.'

Andrew just hummed in response. Neil cleared his throat, bracing himself for unwanted attention.

'So what exactly does 'Riko found us' mean?' 

All the eyes in the room swiveled to him. Someone, he thought it was Allison, muttered, 'Welcome to the shitstorm, Josten.'

Wymack rubbed his eyes. 'One day, I just wanted one day without bullshit.' He looked at Neil, 'I'll explain the details later but the rundown is the Moriyamas who have been looking for Kevin now know the location of the gym.'

Neil nodded consideringly, choosing his words carefully. 'So they didn't know before? From what Andrew told me, I thought they had a lot of power.'

Wymack scoffed. 'Not these particular Moriyamas, necessarily. And we put a fair amount of energy into keeping hidden, hence the shitty exterior. We make sure we're not being followed when we come and go, we don't mail anything, we take precautions. How they found us, not a fucking clue.'

Wymack looked frustrated, but still managed to shoot a subdued Kevin a look of concern. It was...unnatural to see Kevin like this. Neil almost preferred his massive ego and constant criticism. Almost.

Although Neil had more questions, he stayed quiet, accepting that he would get a more detailed explanation later. Wymack turned to face the room at large.

'Everyone has to be more careful now. We don't know what else they know or how far they'll go. Until we do, move in groups, make sure you're not followed. Neil, Kevin try not to leave by yourself. They may know we're here but they can't get in without risking charges. Be alert and remember. I didn't teach you to fight for nothing. Dismissed.'

Everyone got up and filed out of the room; Neil stayed behind, needing to talk to Wymack about...well, everything. Kevin and Andrew remained seated, Kevin talking hurriedly under his breath and Andrew interjecting a word here and there. Neil took a moment to wonder about the nature of their relationship. Andrew seemed pretty determined to keep Kevin safe from the Moriyamas but why? He didn't seem like he did it out of the goodness of his heart. 

Neil forgot about it when Wymack's shadow loomed over him. He carefully kept a spooked expression off his face, following Wymack when he said, 'Come on, Josten, we'll talk over breakfast.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry if the fighting scene came out semi-erotic. i watched a couple MMA fights...thats just the way it is 
> 
> also i have zero experience with fighting scenes so hopefully i will improve with practice 
> 
> comments and kudos are appreciated !!!


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